Aum Namoh Shivaya:
Aum thy name is Shiva, a mantra saluting Shiva as the higher self

Avatar: incarnation
of the divine in human form

Baba: an affectionate
term meaning “father”, used for a guru or a holy man.
Many venerated saints are referred to as Baba or Babaji. The Ji
is a suffix denoting respect

Bhagwati: one of
the names of the universal mother

Brahman: Absolute
or ultimate reality. The One Absolute Being from whom everything
emanates

Brahmanda: universe,
cosmos

Buddhi: root - budh,
to know. Knowledge and the faculty of discernment

Chandra: moon

Chetna: awake awareness

Chit: awareness.
Pure undifferentiated consciousness

Darshan: literally
to see; direct experience. To have darshan of a guru refers to the
insight gained from a manifestation of divinity

Damaru: small drum
varying in length from 6 to 12 inches. Associated with Lord Shiva
who plays this instrument when he dances the tandava nritya. The
drum is shaped like an hour-glass with two skin heads laced to the
body by a thread

Dhuni: a sacred smouldering
fire, tended by ascetics

Gorakh: literally
meaning a person who has mastered his senses (indriyas) and has
complete control over the five vikritis (negative qualities) in
human nature, namely kaam (sexual impulses), krodh (anger), lobh
(greed), moh (attachment) and madh (ego)

Gunas: the 3 aspects
or qualities of the manifest Godhead and of Prakriti. Sattva being
the force of truth, harmony, purity. Rajas is the tendency towards
power, desire and energy. Tamas, the inclination towards inertia
and stagnation. When the Gunas were in disequilibria, the godhead
manifested the known universe

Guru: literally that
which dispels darkness. Spiritual teacher. Often this relationship
is cemented when a guru initiates a disciple into meditation. The
sadguru or satguru (enlightened master) commits to guide his disciple
all the way to enlightenment, through lifetimes of living if need
be

Guru Purnima: day
reserved for homage to the Guru. A festival, related to the element
of Spirit. Occurs in late July or early August.

Jal Samadhi: see
Samadhi

Jiva/Jeeva: individualised
soul

Karma: Root - kri,
to act, do or make. A completed action. Actions, though complete,
exist in subtle form in the unconscious mind and the result of the
karma will manifest sooner or later.
The law of Karma, or causality, states that samskaras (subtle impressions)
dictate our actions. Action in turn creates fresh samskaras, thus
leaving us trapped in the vicious circle of causality with no free
will. Karmas can be beneficial or negative and are categorised as:
Sanchita: stored or
dormantPrarabdha: activeKriyamana: potential
Only by breaking the cycle of Karma can we master our own destiny

Kathopanishad or Katha-Upanishad:
a part of the Yajur Veda. Depicting an interaction between the ideal
student and the ultimate teacher, it narrates how a boy, Nachiketa,
visits the realm of Yama, the Lord of Death to seek knowledge of
the eternal truths

Koan (Japanese):
word or phrase creating a problem that cannot be solved by the intellect
or pure reason or thought, but one which requires intuitive understanding,
a leap of faith

Kriya: root - kri,
to act. an action being performed. Distinct from karma, which is
a completed action Kriya Yoga: practices
that are aimed at purifying the body and the nervous system for
ascendance to higher states of consciousness. Series of recharging
exercises and meditation techniques that lead to the ultimate liberation
(realization) of the divine nature of the Self or soulKumbh: literal meaning
- a vessel. The Kumbh mela or festival is celebrated every 12 years
at the sites, where according to legend, the elixir of life fell
from the vessel carrying it. The elixir manifests its properties
every 12 years when the sun is in the house of Capricorn. The term
Kumbh is also used to refer to a special spiritual gathering of
sages

Kundalini: literal
meaning, the coiled one. The cosmic shakti or dormant potential
that lies coiled in the body. When kundalini awakens in the body
it moves up the central subtle channel piercing the chakras and
initiating various yogic processes that bring about total purification
and rejuvenation of the entire being

Lila: divine play
of consciousness

Maha: great, eternal

Maharaj: literally
king, a term used to refer to a respected sage

Mahatma: great soul

Mahant: spiritual
leader, head of an ashram or sect

Mahabharata: India’s
greatest epic poem, fifteen times longer than the Bible. The first
written versions of it date back to the fifth or sixth century BC

Mahamandaleshwar:
title conferred on a respected sanyasi who heads a sect, region
or religious order

Mahavtar:
great incarnation of the divine

Mandir: temple

Mantra: root - manas,
mind; tra to protect. Mantras are words or syllables that are recited
during meditation practice to release the mind from unfocussed activity
and prepare it for the state of illumination

Mataji: an affectionate
term meaning “mother”, used for a guru or a holy woman

Mauna: Observance
of spiritual silence

Maya: the primal
substance from which nature is formed. One of its qualities is form
producing. However, while it produces form it also tends to veil
the truth. When a mind starts to identify with the form instead
of the underlying reality, it experiences a diminishing of intuitive
and intellectual capacities. The truth hides behind this veil. Maya,
therefore, is illusory but not an illusion

Mukti: liberation

Muni: sage or saint

Nachiketa (or Nachiketas):
literally Na Chiketas, the unperceived, the spirit or the flame
that burns within. Nachiketa is the young seeker in the Kathopanishad
who journeys to Yama, the lord of Death and seeks knowledge of the
ultimate state of being, immortality and the Unmanifest

Nirvana: state of
liberation, beyond duality, where the atman merges in the paramatman.
Ignorance and conflicting emotions cease and the atman attains freedom
from compulsive rebirth in samsara

Pandavas: descendants
of Pandu, patronymic for five sons of Pandu, heroes of the Hindu
epic Mahabharata

Parvati: literally,
daughter of the Himalayas, eternal consort of Shiva

Parikrama: circumambulation

Prakriti: source,
original or material cause of anything, nature, the manifest universe

Prana: the life force
that pervades nature

Pranam: to salute
or bow in reverence

Pranayama: breathing
exercises, breath control practised in Yoga that regulates the strength
and circulation of prana in the body

Prasad: an offering
made to the divine, which is then distributed to devotees with his
blessings

Pravachan: a religious
discourse

Purush: pure, unmanifested
consciousness

Quila: fort

Ramayana: one of
the great Hindu epics

Renunciate: one who
has relinquished attachment to objects, emotional states and actions

Rishi: sage or saint

Rudraksha: seeds
from a tree known to be sacred to Shiva. Often strung as beads on
a string and worn as a mala (necklace)

Sadhu: a monk, an
ascetic

Sadhak: one who is
on the spiritual path

Samadhi: root –
sam, to put together. Complete consciousness. A state of consciousness
where the yogi separates the astral and causal bodies and wanders
in the Bramhand (the cosmic sphere). When a yogi is in a state of
samadhi, his body appears lifeless and his thoughts assume a perfect
balance. This is not a trance state but one of clear and undifferentiated
awareness.
Sthal Samadhi: samadhi taken underground.
Jal Samadhi: samadhi taken underwater

Samskaras: subtle
impressions. All actions, whether mental, physical or verbal, leave
subtle impressions on the mind. These lead us to action, which strengthens
our samskaras and so on, leading to a never-ending cycle

Sankalpa: will and
determination towards a predetermined end, to make an event or circumstance
or thing to manifest.

Sant: saint

Sanyasi: ascetic.
One who has forsaken the household life to seek knowledge (female
equivalent - sanyasini)

Sat, Satya, Satvva:
Truth. Also harmony and purity

Satvik: from Satva,or
Satya, truth, harmony and purity

Shakti: cosmic creative
force. Also the aspect of kundalini which, when aroused, leads to
positive spiritual awakening
`Shiva: a name for
the all-pervasive supreme reality; also the third aspect of the
Hindu trinity, symbolising the destructive aspect.

Shraddha: faith

Shloka: a short verse

Siddha: perfect,
realised or enlightened being. One who has acquired siddhis

Siddhi: spiritual
powers that control self, others and the forces of nature

Swayamvara: ceremonial
occasion at which suitors are invited so a girl can choose her own
groom

Tandava: a dance
form representing the forces of life and death. It is associated
with Lord Shiva and is referred to as Ananda Tandava when it is
performed in joy and Rudra Tandav when performed for the purpose
of destruction

Tantra: root –
tan, to expand. A system of practices for achieving particular goals,
awaken innate abilities and achieve union with the infinite. The
meaning of the word extends in the context of weaving and expanding
the fabric of life

Tantrik: a practitioner
of tantra

Tapasya: penance,
asceticism

Tika: a mark placed
on the forehead signifying commitment to a spiritual ideal

Triloka: literally
the three worlds, earth, heaven and the nether regions

Triloka Tika: symbol
of universal protection

Trishul: a trident,
symbol of Lord Shiva

Upanishads: the end
part of the Vedas, a collection of sacred texts. Root, Upa, under;
ni, near and sad, sit. Sitting at the feet of an illumined master.
The Upanishads reveal the accumulated wisdom of the sages, which
show the path to ultimate knowledge of the Brahman

Upma: South Indian
preparation with semolina

Vaikunth: the celestial
abode associated with Vishnu

Vairagya: renunciation,
freedom from desire, detachment

Vedas: root - vid,
to know, therefore the revealed knowledge of the sages. The Hymns
of the Vedas date back to perhaps 1500 BC and are the oldest religious
scriptures known. The Vedas consist of four collections, Rig, Sama,
Yajur and Atharva. The first part of the Vedas, the Karma Kanda,
preserves ancient hymns, rituals and codes of conduct. The second
part, the Jnana Kanda, contains the Upanishads, the sacred teachings

Videhi: one who is
in his subtle or light body, one who can materialise and dematerialise
his body at will

Yagna, yagya: ritual
sacrifice of the Vedas

Yama: the first mortal.
Lord of the region of Death

Yoga: Union. The
Path, which leads to the ultimate union, the Self, merging with
the Universal Consciousness